In this episode of Great Women in Compliance, host Dr. Hemma Lomax sits down with strategist, author, and culture designer Amy J. Wilson to explore how compliance professionals can become catalysts for culture change, not just enforcers of rules. Together, they unpack what it really takes to evolve workplace culture from the inside out.
Amy brings 20+ years of cross-sector experience—from serving as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow to founding Culture Shift Studio and Healing for Work. She’s the author of Empathy for Change: How to Build a More Understanding World, a book that reframes empathy as a practical tool for systems change and leadership.
Listen in as Amy shares:
- How to shift from “Old Power” mandates to “New Power” movements
- The real reason why 70% of change initiatives fail (hint: it’s not a policy problem)
- The four pillars of successful culture movements: Emotional Connection, Grassroots Energy, Influence Over Enforcement, and Authenticity
- How compliance and culture must work together to build ethical, resilient workplaces
- Her signature framework, the Thriving Together Method, and how it helps organizations move from Awareness to Accountability
Whether you’re a compliance officer, people leader, or culture champion, this conversation will challenge how you think about influence, leadership, and lasting change.
Highlights from the Episode:
- A White House Fellow’s view on what makes change stick
- Why compliance should be participatory, not just punitive
- How psychological safety fuels ethical behavior
- Reframing compliance as a shared responsibility across the organization
- Practical steps to start building a culture movement within your team
Resources:
- Amy’s website: amyjwilson.com
- Empathy for Change(book): com/empathyforchange
- Thriving Together Method: com/empathyactionlab
- Amy on LinkedIn: com/in/realamyjwilson
- Newsletter: Empathy in Action
- Harvard Business Review article: “Changing Company Culture Requires a Movement, Not a Mandate”by Bryan Walker and Sarah A. Soule
About Amy J. Wilson
Amy J. Wilson is a nationally recognized leader in organizational transformation, specializing in emotional intelligence, systems strategy, and culture design. Amy is the founder of Culture Shift Studio, a consulting practice that partners with purpose-driven leaders to co-create emotionally intelligent, participatory, and values-aligned organizational cultures. She also leads Healing for Work, a workplace well-being initiative that supports individuals and teams in recovering from burnout, building emotional resilience, and fostering cultures of mutual care. Together, these two offerings form a holistic ecosystem—helping organizations not only evolve their structures and strategies, but also heal the human experience at work.
With over 20 years of cross-sector experience—from federal innovation and startup acceleration to workforce equity and civic design—Amy brings a rare combination of strategic rigor and deep emotional insight to every engagement. Her work blends systems thinking, human-centered design, and narrative strategy to activate meaningful and lasting cultural evolution.
Amy previously served as a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow, where she co-authored the Innovation.gov Toolkit and led the Better Government Movement, engaging thousands of public servants in redesigning institutional culture. She is also the author of Empathy for Change: How to Build a More Understanding World, a guidebook for changemakers committed to leading with care, clarity, and courage.
Her signature model, the Thriving Together Method, guides organizations through a five-stage process—Awareness, Aspiration, Acceptance, Action, and Accountability—to move beyond surface-level initiatives and embed empathy into their core culture.
Amy currently facilitates the Playable Systems the Ethics, Technology & Public Policy for Practitioners program at Stanford University, and serves on the Guiding Council at Either/Org, a research collective challenging legacy business culture and shaping the future of work. She is co-creating Playable Systems, a participatory research and design program that uses game-based simulations to help people explore power, ethics, and institutional change from the inside out.
